An Endless Night
by Kon Gyousano
Summary: It's a test of faith, reliability, love, and inner strength, with deceptions lurking around every corner. Rated for violence-gore and innuendos. VAMP SEREDARE
1. Prologue

An: I hope everyone enjoys this little fic, it's a prologue…hopefully. If I get enough encouragement to continue with this fic it could become a story but it will probably remain a prologue for some time, so *coughs* Tell a friend! *coughs* Some parts of this prologue will use grammar like a child, but please excuse those; they are just for the effect. Anyway, please enjoy the prologue to 'An Endless Night'.

Disclaimer: I do not; have accepted that I never will, but still wish I did own Sailor Moon. Naoko Takeuchi, Kodanashi, Dic, Mixx, and all those other producers who are in business with Mrs. Takeuchi have the rights and documents to prove they own at least the part of it they manufacture. 

************

An Endless Night

*************

            The chill wind swept by, tossing the blonde waves of an innocent eight-year old child's hair into her eyes. Biting the inside of her cheek, the tiny girl looked around with wide, innocent, and fearful eyes. Everyone seemed to be closing in on her, cornering her into her own section of the crowd. That was when she started to recognize the faces of those cornering her. 

            Her father's eyes seemed dark and evil, burning coals with a light she didn't recognize nor care to. Her aunt stood beside her father, smiling as genuinely as she could, which still appeared fake and transparent on her fault-less face. Her aunt would have been beautiful, if her lovely auburn hair hadn't been put up into those tight braids and buns all the time, and her features hadn't always been a false smile hiding a darker smirk of triumph. 

            Why was her Papa and Aunt Veran approaching her so menacingly? Had she gotten into trouble again? She hadn't meant to spill her grape-juice that one time a few months back, but maybe now that they had found the purple splotch in the tablecloth usually hidden behind the convenient flower basket she always tried to keep filled. No, her Papa and Auntie didn't look upset with her, they looked almost…hungry? 

            Taking a cautious step back, her eyes watering and her form trembling, she asked in a choked an small voice, "Papa?" 

            This seemed to anger her father as he lunged forward, trying to grab her arm. The crowd that had been there a moment before seemed to have dissipated, leaving her trapped between an alley entrance and her angry father and hungry aunt. 

            Running over her options in her head, little Serena made a choice. Turning around she ran into the dark alley looming all too dangerously in front of her. 

The sound of swift footsteps, one high-pitched like heels and one flat like boots followed her retreat. 

Dashing through the dirty place, she dodged a piece of cardboard and dived behind a dumpster, hoping they wouldn't find her. Where was her Papa, this wasn't her Papa. Her papa would never chase her just because he was unhappy with her, he was too…what was the word? Sosistic…no…So-fist-stick-ate-ted…yes, that was the word, sophisticated. So why was her running after her now?

Trying to slow down her racing heart, she noticed the footsteps trailing her had slowed down now and were approaching the area the dumpster was in. A low chuckle filled the fenced-in alley. 

"Come out Serena…we just want to play with you for a little while. What are you running away from? We have candy just for you, a bubblegum lollipop, your favorite…" he hissed when the girl didn't show herself. 

Serena on the other hand wasn't even interested in his candy. Her favorite lollipop flavor WASN'T bubblegum, it was cherry. Besides that, her father would never buy her anything like toys or candy. And most importantly, she wouldn't move from where she was for fear of what would happen to her if she did…

The more she thought about it, the more her breathing became labored as she tried to breathe quietly. What was wrong with her papa, she wanted her papa back…

"Serena I'm not going to ask you nicely again. Come out or I'll find you, and force you to." His voice was colder than usual, hard and uncaring. 

Serena prayed for her heart to be quiet, it seemed it was the loudest thing in the alley now, pumping a mile a minute. 

Snickering, Veran looked at the dumpster knowingly, mentally telling Kenji where to find Serena. A smirk of evil crossed the man's face as he took slow precise steps to the dumpster. Peering over the dumpster lid at the blonde head below, he cooed. "Found you…"

AN: Review please! I need to know if I should continue with this story or let it drop. I did it as a one-part thing, but if people actually like it, I'll continue. I can't stress it enough, PLEASE REVIEW!!!!               


	2. Lita

AN: I'll make this as short as possible. Yes this is a vampire fic. Yes it will continue. Yes Darien will eventually be added into it. 

Disclaimer: I'll make this short too. I don't own sailor moon. Nada! None of it!

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An Endless Night

Lita

******************

            Lita Johnson was the envy of half the girls at her elementary school, and yet she didn't know or acknowledge it. With curled mahogany hair down to the middle of her back, vibrant forest green eyes, and the already tall curvaceous figure, Lita had the grace and quick smile every girl her age wished for. 

            She could go outside for hours on end and come in without a burn, but a beautiful tan. Lita loved to exercise, cook, and clean. In simple terms, Lita would make the perfect housewife. 

            The only problem? Lita didn't envision herself doing anything greater than a housewife should do.  

            Her sparkling eyes seemed misted and too big for her face, in Lita'a opinion. Her bronze skin looked orange to her eyes, and her figure seemed lanky and underdeveloped to her. 

Lita's lovely silk hair, which jealous girls at her school would rant about, was Lita's least favorite trait. Lita looked at her hair as a fault, too reddish to be brown, and too brown to be reddish. The curled end resembled a snake to her, too long for the rest of her hair, and blatantly stringy. 

So, even with all her attributes, Lita saw herself as the most imperfect she could possibly be. 

Lita was currently making some fettuccini with Parmesan sauce and some nice Italian bread on the side. Everything was seasoned with just the right amount of spices, and lots of garlic sprinkled on everything. 

Lita sniffled as she put her plate down in front of the one chair at the table. 

Every time she cooked something for supper this happened. She'd look at the one-chaired table and cry. Well she wouldn't cry tonight! She'd be brave, and face her painful memories…

Memories of the airplane accident that had killed both her parents. 

Quickly finishing her meal, she noticed her garbage bag was full. That was one advantage to having an apartment. The alley behind her little 'house' had a dumpster right below her window, so she didn't have to walk downstairs when she wanted to throw out her garbage, she could just toss it out of the window. 

Hefting up the large sack of the past months dinners, she pushed up her window and shoved the heavy thing out. Wiping her hands on her pants she grabbed her plate from dinner…only picked at because she was too busy trying not to cry…

Closing her eyes she took a deep breath and walked to window and carefully held out her plate so her food wouldn't spill anywhere but the dumpster. Looking down, she saw a little blonde hiding behind the dumpster and a man and woman advancing on the girl a few years younger than her by appearances. 

Frowning, Lita tossed her garlic bread down before rushing to the stairs to go see what was taking place in her 'backyard.'

***************************

            Serena was so scared. She could hear her blood rushing through her veins, and her heart pumping a mile a minute. Fear had sunk it's greedy talons into her arm, and the effect had worked like poison through her system. She could barely breathe as she looked up into the soulless eyes of her papa. 

            "Found you…" he was grinning evilly down at her…showing her that she could escape right now, but couldn't at the same time. It was suddenly so tempting to stay right where she was even as he leant over the garbage…

            A howl of pain ripped through the haze her mind had fallen into as her 'papa' snapped his hand back to himself, his fingers red and charred while his palm was openly bleeding. Shaking her head to clear the remnants of fog from her mind, she noticed a black garbage bag and an entire meal of Italian food, uneaten, had fallen from a window above her. 

            Looking up, Serena noticed the windows around the area for the first time. This must be an apartment complex area…

            Snarling from above her brought her back to the here and now. Her father was holding his injured hand and looking at the food as if it were an insect to be crushed under his powerful palm. 

            Whimpering, Serena huddled her knees to herself and stared at her father's look-alike. His eyes were so dark…

            Suddenly a loud gasp tore through the tense air, making the blond look up and see a girl who looked a few years older than her standing at the entrance of the ally and looking at her father's replica as if he were an alien. Maybe he was an alien, that sure would explain some things…

*******************

            Lita was on a roll tonight. She hadn't cried during dinner, and she had adrenaline pumping through her veins, like always when she sensed a fight was about to begin. 

            Her first experience in a fight had been when she was bullied on the preschool playground, in which she had punched the bully so hard he had to leave the school for a day to recover. The bully had stubborn dignity however, and hadn't told the principal who had broken his nose. 

            His stubborn dignity had repeated itself a few years later, when he thought his muscles were big enough to break wood. Her second fight was in first grade when she had beaten the same bully again in a rematch, but this time around, the bully had stayed home for three days from her punches. 

            To think, she mused to herself, that she had never even kicked him. 

            This woman that she had seen from her window had vanished, but the man was still standing over the little girl who was simpering. 

            Glancing at the huddled figure again, she felt instinctive protectiveness for the poor girl, and snapped her head up to glare at the man. Although he had the height advantage, she still seemed to look down on him. Although nine-year old intelligence isn't always the greatest asset, she knew that when children curled up and adults stood over them, they needed help. 

            Charging forward with a battle cry, and started the battle with a fast punch to his stomach and a roundhouse kick to his mouth

            The first hit was dodged, but the second hit him right in the jaw, making a sickening crunching sound. 

This man was quick, she had to admit.

Roaring with the fire that came to her when she fought, she met his punch with a flurry of her own, half of hers hitting him with her youthful speed while she dodged his punch easily. Steadily breathing in and out, she kicked at his knee, and then grabbed a pinch-full of the skin under his elbow. Pulling quite hard on her catch, she bit down the smile that rose with his high squeak of pain. 

Something was holding this man back from touching her face, she could see it in the way his eyes flitted to her mouth and nose every so often. 

Breathing in and out deeply as she full out charged him, she did smile when he shrieked in pain. 

What she wasn't expecting was for the dumpster to tip over with her charge, and have him crushed beneath the contents of the heavy black metal, contents spilling onto his feet and head.   

It came as even more of a shock when some of her dinner's fettuccini fell onto his face and burned a trial wherever it touched until nothing but ashes remained. 

She was no stranger to tragedy and violence, but what disturbed her is that this man hadn't bled once. Not when she had taken at least one tooth out had he spat out any blood, and nothing had leaked out when the food had burned his face right through. 

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she looked down at the scared girl still shaking below her. Leaning over and putting her hands on her knees, she greeting the girl in her friendliest voice. 

"Hi."

******************

            Serena watched as a chestnut-haired angel rushed forward and started fighting her papa. No, not her papa, the look-alike. 

            She watched fascinated as her papa's duplicate was burned to nothing within minutes of the beginning of the fight. 

            The girl seemed to be in deep thought, before she came over to Serena, leaned down and said kind of breathlessly, "Hi." 

            Her rescuer's voice was low for her person, but bright and happy for having just…incinerated someone. 

            And yet…there was honesty in this girl's eyes…

            "Hello, my name's Serena! What's your name?" Serena asked, feeling a little better now that those bad people were gone.

            "Lita…Lita Johnson. Do you have a family somewhere I should take you to?" Lita's green eyes flashed with something…an old wound maybe. 

            "No. My papa took care of me, because mama left one day." Serena's voice had lowered to a whisper as she spoke. 

            Lita looked at Serena sympathetically. She knew what it was like not having parents. 

            "Come on, you can come have some hot chocolate in my apartment with me. You've had a rough day."  


	3. Crimson Dawn

AN: Well, chapter two didn't get nearly as many reviews as I'd hoped for…remember, this story is running off reviews. If you want the story to continue, please post reviews. 

Miriam, your questions will all be answered eventually, it was not a typo mistake.*smiles* Enjoy. 

Disclaimer: I'm going to start making these really short. All I will say is, "I don't own Sailor Moon" unless I feel you need to torture yourself reading these. 

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An Endless Night

Crimson Dawn

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            Darien prowled the alleyway searching tonight's dinner. Three hobos over there…people wouldn't think of their opinions as credible, so there would be no real witnesses to their fourth friend, a rapist and thief's demise. Besides, they would most likely thank him later when he told them how much the man had stolen from their tiny salary. 

            Dropping down from the roof-top he had been searching the streets from, he gracefully rolled into a standing position in the dirty alley. 

            Creating a mindless forgetfulness in the two homeless men's minds, he quietly stepped towards the awake robber. 

            Putting up a invisible soundproof barrier on the alley, he leaned over the figure hugging his torn blanket to him. A quick scan revealed a needle in the mans hand, and the dazed look in the man's eyes further confirmed Darien's assumption about where the money went. 

            The man was shaking, while looking at Darien as if he were the evil one.

            Using his elongated fangs he made a quick meal out of the man, letting the last of his life bleed out of him. 

            Contrary to the popular belief, vampires usually did NOT enjoy the death of their victims. Darien, however, deemed this lesser being deserving of the fate handed to him. 

            Licking blood-stained lips, he pressed himself into the wall and released the other two men from their stupors. He watched as they stumbled for a moment before noticing their dead comrade. One of them seemed to frown a little, but the other seemed genuinely unremorseful of the man's demise. The two homeless men shared a look, stating that neither would speak of this event, and they both quickly left the area. 

            Darien glanced down the alley, his sharp sapphire eyes taking in the empty street as he jumped back onto the roof. 

            The mugger hadn't been much of a meal, but he would have to do. The purer the soul of the victim, the better tasting the blood was. Darien had started out drinking from smaller animals, which eventually led to sick pets, and now his current dinner menu was dying elders, criminals, and girls. 

            Why girls when he could just as easily kill normal men? Well, men didn't have periods. His strategy was not meant to be cold or EEEEEvil, but it was a simplicity that worked. 

            The fact that all vampires gained ethereal beauty was just a bonus to getting blood. You see, Darien would use his seduction powers, another perk of being a vampire, and lure experienced woman on their cycles to sleep with him. He would then insist on giving them oral sex, even if they were bleeding. While taking out large but not fatal amounts of blood out, he would push ecstasy into their system, and they would all just pass it off as a 'good lay.'

            Elderly sometimes just wanted away from the pain they were in, usually from misused youth. Criminals in his opinion were a waste of air, and air was precious. 

            The raven-haired vampire had his whole life's food supply planned in advance. He would use girls when he was feeling dangerous, he'd kill criminals in a worldwide favor when he was angry, and in the rare occasions when he felt merciful, elderly in pain would have blissful deaths. 

Darien sighed. Ridding the streets of that one mugger hadn't made him any less angry then we he set out to get dinner. Slamming his fist into a nearby brick he didn't look up when he felt parts of it crack and break away from his powerful knuckles, which weren't even cut from their extremely harsh treatment. 

            He was angry for several reasons right now, the first being his sister, Raye. She had recently found her mate, and jealousy at her luck gave him a fuel for other things that also were wrong at the moment. Another reason to be angry? Darien had realized that his most recent conquest, Veran, had attempted to kill his true mate out of jealousy while she was a child. As soon as he found out of her treachery, he had instantly tried to find and kill her. The fact she would try something so evil clearly pointed out that she had turned into a creature of the night, an evil vampire. 

He wasn't sure how long ago she had changed but he didn't really care. All he cared about is that she knew who his true mate was.       

            And he wanted his mate. 

            Vampires were used to refer to noble creatures long ago, until the creatures of the night and undead had risen. Undead were vampires who gave up on everything, and wished to die. Eventually undead would turn into zombies, sluggish creatures whose only will was to be aware of what was around them. Most vampires did not have ill will towards humans, elves, werewolves and other such creatures, but creatures of the night did. Few real vampires were left in this world full of terror and hate that humans didn't even know the truth about.  

            Veran had left him though, obviously catching word that he knew what she had attempted. She was quite crafty too, leaving nothing behind that would hint at where she went. 

            He was livid when he found out. 

            Veran was a rather old creature, but not older then him. Did he forget to mention? 

He was the first one. 

******************

            A sixteen-year old Serena brushed her annoying blonde bangs out of her eyes once again. 

            All her life she had lived with Lita in her apartment, working to try and make odds and ends meet. Eventually, Ami, a high-paid nurse befriended Serena while she was working. 

            Lita and Serena had opened a small teashop, specializing in different types of herbal and international teas. Serena had dropped out of school after fifth grade, because the hours were not compatible with her school and business anymore. Although government agencies usually forced kids to have educations, Lita had sent one back from their shop with a bloody nose and bruised lid, making all the pesky big shots go away. 

            Right now Serena was trying very hard not to laugh, or explode. 

            She looked down at the laughing, obnoxiously audacious woman in front of her, trying to think positively of the woman's horrible cackling and incessant hair flipping. 

            It wouldn't have been so hard if the woman hadn't kept talking so shrilly about absolutely nothing. 

            Serena had the sinking suspicion that this 'woman' was trying to get the attention of the blonde about two tables back, Andrew.

            She and Andrew had been good friends for about three years now, and mostly because she was one of the first girls who didn't look at him as conquerable meat, a toy, or a bauble. Most lovesick woman like this green-haired banshee wore out their welcome before they were even introduced to their 'soul mate.' 

            What was humorous about the situation was that not only was this the eighth woman to try this today on Andrew, but that Andrew already had a girlfriend. 

            Biting her lip so she wouldn't burst out laughing, Serena nodding dully to the woman's overly pointed jokes, trying valiantly not to snort. 

            She gulped, regaining her composure. "How may I help you?" She schooled her face into the prefect kind understanding sales woman. 

            Green-woman's eyes were wide as she noticed the slight hint of knowledge lurking in Serena's eyes. "I'd just like some tea!" she snapped, the beast in the dragon surfacing. 

            Smiling contritely Serena pretended to jot it down and scurried away, or more specifically over to Andrew's table. "Andrew, we have a situation in the backroom, come help us clean it up." The green-eyed waiter grinned knowingly and inclined his head towards the now labeled 'Verde Banshee.' 

            Rolling crystal blue-eyes Serena nodded sadly, motioning for Andrew to follow her. 

            Once both parties had reached the back room, Andrew burst out laughing, and Serena soon joined in. Calming herself down, Serena bopped Andrews head to get him to stop as well. "This one is YOURS to get rid of. I took care of the last ten." 

            Andrew pulled up puppy eyes and started to whine. "But this is only the eighth! I did that horrible one last week, remember? The gothic queen? Please don't make me!!" Serena ignored his begging and shoved him out to the wolf, or…the verde banshee. 

            "Why hello there…who might you be?" And the blue-eyed waitresses guess was correct again! The verde banshee WAS trying to get a date with Andrew. 

            A sweat drop appeared on Andrews head at the woman's blatant flirting. The batting mascara covered lashed weren't helping. "Um…nobody important. I just came to tell you that we are out of tea, and closing in ten minutes. I have to go inform the other costumers now." Nodding a little he quickly left, pretending not to see the desperate shattered hope of the verde banshee. 

            Re-entering the back room, Andrew shot a guffawing Serena a sharp glare. "The next one's yours" He stated blandly, causing all her laughs to immediately halt. 

            "Hey! No fair! I took the last seven! The next SIX are yours!" Serena knew she had an unfair advantage over Andrew, while she was immune to his puppy dog act, she had a series of evil begging techniques that never failed. 

            It started with the eyes. Bat twice, then let tears well up. Sniffle delicately, then pout. Bite lip to make it seem like you're trying to stop from crying, sniffle twice, and make lower lip tremble. Sniffle again. Bat eyes three more times. 

            Andrew watched with slow terror as Serena began the famous puppy face, and started to frantically look around and shake his head. Stage one was past now…"No" he said. Stage two was here… He cringed away but managed a weak "Never." Stage three and he was a goner. "Alright fine."   
            Serena grinned widely and hugged Andrew. Now, she needed to get back to the apartment before another psycho raided it. Ever since she had moved in with Lita, those…THINGS had been going through Lita's apartment and raiding it. The strange thing was that it never happened when they were home. Lita thought the 'things' were demons raised from the depths of hell, (mainly because her apartment repeatedly got torn up) but Serena didn't. The creatures didn't look like demons should, with all black hair, red eyes, black wings, and some scary emblem carved on their torso. Serena had seen one of the creatures jump out the window to Lita's bedroom once while she was coming home from work. 

            The thing jumping out of her window had not only been non-demon looking, it had been a female.   
            Now, Serena didn't know much about demons, but weren't the demons who got sent to do lower jobs like raiding girl's apartments supposed to be stupid male demons? That lead her to believe that what was ransacking their apartment was NOT a hell-spawned creature. 

            Heading out the door, Serena wondered if she'd ever see another creature fleeing the scene of the crime again. The only reason they had never filed a report on their apartments strange raiding was because the police would realize she and Lita didn't attend school, and the media would have a field day. 

            Still, she wished all these random 'visits' would end soon. 


	4. Uninvited Guest

****  
  
An Endless Night  
  
Chapter 4  
  
****  
  
Icicles drooped stoically from the ceiling of her cave. The stalactites had been there for as long as she could remember.   
  
Drip  
  
A single drop of water gathered at the bottom of one icicle, and fell to the stone flooring. The sound echoed in the stillness of the cave.   
  
Maybe this was what had driven her to madness. This cave, with it's infinite catacombs and frigid temperatures so cold nothing could possibly live in it. Or maybe she had always been insane, like one of the stalactites, slowly dripping her sanity away...  
  
Shaking her head, Veran snapped out of her trance-like state. She needed to focus on the here and now, and letting her mind relapse was a sure way of getting found.   
  
And letting Darien find her was not an option; at least, not after what she had done.   
  
No...trying to kill someone's mate was worse then killing the person themselves. And she was sure that Darien had a punishment in store for her that was worse than killing oneself.   
  
She still intended to kill Darien's mate, but her less than stable mind had yet to grasp the fact that after she had done the dirty deed his punishment would be ten thousand times worse, and that she still wouldn't be able to have Darien once his mate was gone.   
  
She pulled out her map, and ran a finger down the ivory page, yellowed around the edges from her harsh living conditions.   
  
She would have to send someone to try and find it again...since the last one had failed. Another item to add to her 'to do' list. Closing her eyes in concentration, she summoned one of the newer and stupider creatures to go and find it. Ordering one of the smarter creatures would not be a wise thing to do.  
  
Glancing at the map again, she choose three random areas where she thought she might be safe for the night before she could return to put an end to this horrible lifestyle.   
  
Leslie street appeared to have an alley she could stay at, and then Blackberry lane, and finally she could return to finish what she had been strategically planning for ten years.   
  
A wicked smile stretched across her face, exposing her elongated canines.   
  
Walden Apartments.   
  
***  
  
Have you ever noticed how it seems at least twice as dark once something makes a noise nearby you? It's a really creepy experience let me tell you. Being a blond walking around in the middle of the night was not my idea of a fun time, but I had Lita here to protect me. Well, maybe not protect but guard me. Did you know Lita took three different forms of martial arts when she was in grade school? She took karate, kung fu, and jujitsu. The thing that comforted me is that she received high ranking in all of them. But that was before her parents died, before we met Ami...and before we met Rei.   
  
Rei was an appealing friend to talk with or think about. She had an exotic quality to her that made you want to take a second glance. Unfortunately when I took that second glance she snapped at me for staring at her. Heh.... Anyway, her hair is this REALLY dark color, it looks almost ebony. I don't think it's natural to have such a hair color, but Rei is so religiously devoted I doubt she'd ever dye her hair. She's a Shinto priestess, and quite a scary one when angry. I should know, I'm usually the one she takes it out on. She has a really powerful arm when she wields a broom.   
  
Now that I think about it, all of my friends have hair and eye colors that scream "I'm not natural" but none of them wear contacts or have dyed their hair. Well, Miko-chan might have dyed her hair for fun, but she was definitely a born blond.   
  
Minako was another highly animated friend of mine. She really baffles me sometimes, what with her distorted quotes and over-dramatized behavior. Sometimes I'm scared to go out with her to public places. I'm sure I can be just as bad sometimes though, so I won't complain.   
  
I jumped when a bush rustled near by, and huddled closer to my brunette Amazon. She looked down at me kind of funny, and I think she's probably mentally commenting about the little kitten whimper I just made. Was that a wolf? No that howl sounded more human, probably some weirdo screaming. All the same, I decided that I needed to pick up the pace and keep up with Lita's swift steps. I think she's trying to avoid being seen near me.   
  
I latched onto her arm again, and leeched two years of life out of it in squeezing strength. She actually asked me to loosen my grip. I guess I'm being a little weird right now, but I'm so scared!   
  
BOOM  
  
'Oh my god Oh my god Oh my God' became a mantra in my head as I tried to make myself breathe again. I couldn't see...everything seemed unnaturally bright now...I couldn't hear either, what was going on...  
  
And then I realized this wasn't the first time this had happened. Closing my eyes I waited until everything was black again before reopening my eyes. The edges of my vision were still fuzzy, but I could clearly make out a gleeful Lita throwing something between her hands that was too bright to make out distinct shape.   
  
I still couldn't hear, but I could feel the vibration of my screaming as the shouted at her.   
  
"DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" I didn't want to go past that, for fear of sounding like an idiot because I couldn't hear myself.   
  
Lita looked at me innocently. She knew I couldn't hear, and she knew that if she said something in response to my screaming, I wouldn't hear it. So she decided to show it with puppy eyes and a pouting face.   
  
A trickle of rain started to fall.   
  
I knew what her argument would be though, that she had just saved me the trouble of three blocks worth jumpiness but taking all the friction out of the approaching storm. And she'd be right, as usual.   
  
I was terrified of lightning. Lita however, was obsessed with it. She had once assured me that lightning wouldn't want to strike something so low to ground as me, which I had replied to by elbowing her in the ribs. For some unknown reason, the brunette could charge up electricity like a battery, and shock people from a foot away. She could also siphon electricity out of a storm, or direct it's path if I wasn't there to hinder her fiendish for it.   
  
The rain was steadily growing heavier.  
  
We resumed walking as if nothing had happened, although now I was stumbling as we walked from hindered vision. One block away from our apartment, my hearing returned to near normal and I let Lita have it.   
  
"You KNOW I hate it when you do that, even if it IS for my benefit."   
  
"And you KNOW that I hate it when you whine about things you should be grateful for," she retorted smartly, not missing a beat. She was still tossing the ball of lightning around as if it were a baseball.   
  
"Put that away!" I demanded, pointing at the crackling mass of electricity making my hair float towards it.   
  
"Fine." She tossed the lightning into the air one final time, this time making a stretching motion with her fingers. The white energy snaked out to meet her fingertips, and she continued to move her hands farther apart, until the lightning was stretched so thin it broke into a shower of tiny harmless sparkles.   
  
"Show off," I muttered. I didn't have a power like Lita's. I couldn't control any element I knew of. Lita and I had discovered that certain people could control different elements...to an extent. And that everyone drew their life's energy off one, if not more, of the four elements. Rei could manipulate flames, Mina tapped off wind to read people's emotions, and Amy could freeze water solid. But me...I must be one of those people who takes from all the elements equally because I couldn't do anything magical whatsoever.   
  
It was a downright downpour now.   
  
We rounded the corner to our apartment building, and I looked up towards the star filled sky, wondering why I was blessed with such exceptional friends.   
  
That's when I saw it.   
  
Wordlessly, I stopped walking, put my arm up to halt Lita, and slowly lifted a solitary finger up towards the spot I had seen it, making sure my whole hand didn't move with the finger.   
  
There was something dark hovering on the rim of our shared balcony window, and when the moonlight bounced off it, I gasped at the glinting white fangs it revealed.   
  
There was no doubt in my mind.   
  
This was our uninvited 'visitor'.  
  
AN: I'm not sure if I should make this chapter longer...but it really took me a long time to get this out...so I'm thinking...no. 'Cause...well...I know that a lot of people enjoy this story, and I don't want to stop writing it, but people have been bugging me lately to get chapters out faster...so I'll just have to make them shorter. Sorry! 


	5. Raven's Flight

AN: For ChibiJ, she Raye is his sister. I'm glad someone noticed that.because it will come up later. Hint( Well .after so many wonderful reviews, I've decided to write another chapter! Ok maybe I was planning to all along but the reviews just gave me the incentive to do it! So shortly, if you give me reviews, I'll write faster!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or it's characters. See previous chapters for a more in depth disclaimer as to who the rights belong to.  
  
***  
  
An Endless Night Chapter 5: Raven's Flight  
  
***  
  
The rain pelted down in fat bullets, weighing most creatures that were out down because of wet clothing or fur. But Darien wasn't the least bit effected by the driving rain, he had a mission to complete.  
Glancing around, he picked up a stray hair on the ground, and immediately matched it to it's owner.  
Veran was here.  
She was getting sloppy, leaving more and more clues to her whereabouts behind. This time not only did he find two hints, he found a third, one which clued him in to where she would be going next.  
Thoughts of revenge bounced around in his head, before he remembered that vengence took an equal toll on the avenger as it did the avenged. He was in this for justice.  
317537 was carved into the ground of this cave, along with some other strange symbols that Veran had successfully obliterated. It was obvious she had left in a hurry, for one of the clues were the unevenly spaced disturbed soil, showing her exact path out the opening of this limestone cave.  
Clever, he thought as he flipped the numbers upside-down, the view a stranger in the cave would have. They clearly read 'LESLIE'  
Taking on the form of fog, he sped off to the nearest street named Leslie he knew of.  
  
***  
  
Lita and Serena ran out of the elevator doors, pocketknives in hand and ready as Lita nearly broke down the door. It ended up being Serena who pulled her away and slammed the key in and ripped the door open, but it was Lita who went in first seeing red as their apartment was again torn apart like a mini tornado had blown through.  
By the time they reached the balcony, the red-eyed creature was gone.  
  
Breathing raggedly, Serena looked around their dark apartment as if the shadows were alive. Raising her trembling hand she flipped on the lights, holding her breath as she did.  
The place was thrown about, but there was nothing besides their belongings on the floor.  
With an angry sob Serena fell to the floor, clutching Lita's leg.  
"WHY US? What did WE ever do to them?" screaming she slammed her fists onto the ground, probably waking whoever lived below them.  
Lita slowly fell to her knees beside Serena, and hugged her friend hard. "I don't know Sere. I don't know." She whispered while trying to calm down the trembling blonde.  
Eventually Serena's crying turned into hiccups and Lita make soothing motions on her back.  
Both girls got up and mechanically started putting their apartment back together. Every now and then one of them would sniffle as they found something prized torn, bent, broken or shredded.  
Suddenly Serena stopped moving and picked up a white piece of paper, innocently sitting on the floor. It read in timeless perfected writing, "We'll be back." This time the message was written in dried blood, caking the paper and making it crinkle under the substance.  
Sucking in the same scared breath she always did when these notes were found by herself and not Lita, Serena reached up for her pendant to reassure herself everything was going to work out in the end.  
Her hands grasped the warm crystal and she let out a steady sigh. Her mother had given her this necklace for her birthday when she turned five, saying it was a precious family heirloom made of real crystal and real silver chain.  
Relieved now that she had let the held breath out, Serena customarily balled up the piece of paper and tossed in the in almost overflowing trashcan, filled to the brim with destroyed items.  
Finally finished fixing up the place, Serena and Lita collapsed onto their beds, going to sleep as fast as humanly possible.  
  
***  
  
A chill wind swept through the dirty street Veran was resting at. She didn't feel cold at all though, but then again having no blood would make you constantly feel warm wouldn't it, she mused to herself.  
While being caught in her inner thoughts, she failed to notice the shadow looming from a roof overhead. The second thing she unsuccessfully recognized was the distinct male scent that blew through the street.  
Thunder exploded in the distance, catching Veran from her reflecting. That was when she realized someone had seized her thoughts and had put her under a compulsion.  
Bumping up her plan she immediately attempted to transform into a crow and flee, but she could already feel her feet sinking into the now liquidized pavement.  
Grounding her.  
Giving her no escape.  
Closing her eyes she quickly formed a mental and physical shield around herself. No need for Darien to find out anything more than he already knew.  
For she knew that no one besides Darien would even bother coming after her.  
She held arms out, ready for the melee to begin.  
  
***  
  
Darien watched Veran as she readied herself for the battle in a matter of seconds and didn't even bother respecting her quick preparation.  
Sensing the confused thoughts tumbling through her head he instantly knew she was no longer sane.  
Leaning over, he spread his arms and jumped off the building.  
Falling.forever from the silvery night..  
Finally he landed, with the grace of only the most skilled felines, one knee bent from pressure, and one out sideways ready for a full out physical strike.  
Focusing only a minor part of his concentration he broke most of the pavement into bits and hurled them at Veran.  
Instantly catching onto this new situation, Veran morphed into an ebony hummingbird, flitting through and around the bits of rubble. As soon as Darien realized his first plan wasn't working he sent a compulsion over to let down her shields which she easily cut off before it could even touch her thoughts.  
"Tell me who she is." There was no question as to who 'she' referred to in Darien's mind.  
Smirking, Veran reverted to her normal form and leaned to the side with her head cocked, in what she assumed was a seductive position.  
"I don't know. Don't you think I should get something for that juicy little piece of gossip?" Darien almost laughed in her face at the insanity of her statement. Gossip? She KNEW who his mate was damn it! And he wasn't going to let Veran escape until he knew exactly the same thing as she did.  
"Damn you Veran. I'll kill you if you don't tell me." All the fun and games were gone. Twin pairs of blue infernos locked eyes with the creature, and for a second, Darien thought he saw the craziness in her eyes lift for a moment. Like the lightning flash above it was gone though, so he could not be sure.  
Veran knew what she wanted. Here was this stupid elder, the OLDEST elder, and he didn't even know who his mate was. He should just settle for her instead. Somehow this twisted thought made sense to her.  
In a blur of quicksilver, Darien had locked Veran between a brick wall and him, his arm around her neck the only thing holding her up.  
Two seconds later he realized he was grasping thin air as his nails bit into his hand. She couldn't have gotten too far yet though, and so with forced calm he'd learned over the years, he instantly started searching. With his senses closed off he instantly picked up on erratic mind signals coming from six miles away. He internally snarled as he followed after her in his condensed state.  
Immediately he thought of a spell to trap her inside an invisible container until he could reach where she was now, three miles from him. Her mental scream of aggravation was the best symphony ever to play to his ears.  
Turning into tiny drops of water he quickly fell towards the ground, changing back to normal as he went. By the time he reached the ground he had fully transformed and was looking up at the semi-translucent container pensively.  
Getting an idea he started controlling the amount of pressure inside the prison. "Tell me who she is." It was not a question or a demand, it was an order.  
Without a moment's hesitation Veran had sent a chorus of * NO * to him. Narrowing his iced over sapphires he turned up the pressure in the container a thousand times more than the normal outside pressure.  
Blocking out any senses she tried to push onto him he asked the question again.  
Veran looked out through her prison, barely conscious and half delirious. While no human could survive that kind of pressure, it would inflict a hell-fold lot of damage without killing her type. She just had to think of the anti-spell.  
But with Darien standing down there threatening her while she thought she had to come up with something to say to appease him before he stepped it up a notch.  
"If you let me go, I'll tell you."  
Darien considered this, and then formed a pair of pure white handcuffs, red crosses imprinted all the way around both their sides. With a wave of his hand, both sides had clipped around Veran's wrists and ankles with a sharp metallic sound.  
Not bothering to levitate her as she fell to the ground. One dull thud later, Darien repeated his question.  
Veran was having a hard time masking her plans from his prying mental fingers, and her eyes widened as his consistent combing stole an image of a blonde pigtailed child, huge blue eyes smiling innocently at the world.  
Fortunately for her she knew the anti lock to these handcuffs though. Instantly touching her fingers all together into one big mesh she transformed into an ominous raven which quickly took to the sky.  
Darien watched her go, impassively. There would be more chances for him to strike. He had what he wanted for right now.  
A word and a picture of a blonde haired pixie.  
Niece.  
  
*** AN: Sorry it's not very long. I think I could have done a better job with this chapter, but I wanted to get this one out sometime this century. I'm very sorry for the long wait and short chapter. Now that I'm finally moved it should take shorter periods of time to post chapters. *smiles* So you can hope that chapters will be longer from now on. Remember, reviews=incentive for faster update. 


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